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How do you decide how many squares of each to plant? I know some of it is based on use, etc, but I'm really feeling lost with this. I have no idea how much some things yield per square, etc. I have a good sense with tomatoes, but that's about it and only because I've grown them before. Can you all share your process with deciding how much to plant?

I just wing it and make mental notes and write some things down in a garden notebook. Weather, disease, or bumper crop , how much your family will eat, how much you want to preserve all factor in. I don't know if there is a formula other than what you decide and learn as you go through the process.

I believe this is something that takes years to learn.Part of it is learning what you are going to do with it. If you are going to preserve in some way so you can eat into the winter, you would likely need lots. I plant TONS of tomatoes and can them, freeze them and all the green ones in the fall, I set in a cold room and let them ripen.... (plus give lots away)Beans I eat can freeze....My big thing last year is that I planted WAY too many peppers to know what to do with them, but then I learned to roast and freeze them and have used them all winter.

So I guess it all depends on what you plan to do with it.

When basil is producing my household is like ...... yes dear we ARE having pesto AGAIN...... (whats wrong with pesto 7 times a week?)

Mostly I also "wing it" but when there are things I WANT to "control" I start by thinking how much I want for a week (or month) and work backward.

For instance if I'd like a cabbage every three weeks. I figure the LAST date I can plant cabbage the mark my calendar BACK every three weeks until I hit the date where I can FIRST plant it.

You can go through each veggie and plan your squares accordingly.

Hope my explanation makes sense.

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I have seen women looking at jewelry ads with a misty eye and one hand resting on the heart, and I only know what they're feeling because that's how I read the seed catalogs in January - Barbara Kingsolver - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Each year you make mental notes: "Never doing that again" "Wish I had planted more of..." and adjust that way. The fun for me was letting my garden dictate what I would be eating. At one point I felt pressured to eat - there was so much stuff! And that is how I learned to can and freeze too.

I know I was wondering about this, too. I have done tomatoes and peppers before so I had an idea on them, but have never done spinach, lettuce, broccoli (well never successfully did it), beans or peas. Most of them I'd like to do more than I have the space, but will freeze the extras - except lettuce, we might have to much of that. But I'll have chickens that will eat anything extra or I can give to the food pantry I help run (someday maybe I can have the space to plan to produce for the pantry).

There are 5 of us (the 6th joining us in July). My husband and I, and the 2 year old eat veggies, but the other two are ubber picky, and I doubt will eat much of anything.

I have 64 squares, we just finished them a few days ago! I have the ability to freeze quite a bit, and will try my hand at canning. I usually water bath tomatoes, but I'm up for pressure canning other things, I just need to learn to do it. I hope to use and give away quite a bit, whatever it takes not to waste things.